World Health Organization:
Mental health is “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.”
What is mental health really? Is it simply the absence of mental illness? What are the signs of mental illness? How do we support our students, families and the teachers and staff who are connecting with students that are struggling with social, emotional and behavioral issues?
In an effort to answer some of these questions and provide you with resources to advocate effectively for your students and families, the Regional Nurse Specialists developed training on mental health titled “All Hands on Deck”. The trainings started two weeks ago, and we have had some great reviews and encourage all of you to sign up for one of the 19 trainings left this spring! If you are real adventurous, and can’t make the site based trainings (these are highly recommended because of the interactive nature of the training), try one of the web based opportunities. (See the link below)
We understand the tremendous demands on your time, but did you know that mental health was identified as one of Colorado’s ten most winnable battles?
You may ask, “But what is my role?” This is a great question and one we spend a lot of time exploring with you in the training. With all the demands on your time, it makes sense to know how to prioritize your time and who the other members of the team are, right? One school psychologist suggested that “school nurses are sense makers of the health and mental health needs of our students”. I don’t know about you but that seems like a powerful role and sounds a lot like advocacy! Advocacy requires that we care, but it also requires that we have a grasp of the real needs of students and their families and we can be a part of the solution--this is why it is critical for school nurses to be at the “table” so to speak!
The following are typical talking points when we are having conversations about mental health needs:
• Students with diagnosable problems
• Therapy and behavior change
• Connecting community mental
health providers to schools
• What mental health professionals do
• Empirically-supported treatments
But these are not all encompassing—the following prevention and promotion concepts are often assumed or left to chance rather than intentionally addressed in a comprehensive health services continuum for students.
Providing programs to promote social-emotional development, prevent mental health and psychosocial problems, and enhance resiliency and protective buffers
• Providing programs and services to intervene as early after the onset of learning, behavior, and emotional problems as is feasible
Drawing on all empirical evidence as an aid in developing a comprehensive, multifaceted, and cohesive continuum of school-community interventions to address barriers to learning and promote healthy development.
This training strives to first promote your confidence in sound, evidence –based interventions that look at charting a course for prevention, and the promotion of positive mental health and academic success for all students! (It also takes a good look at caring for our own mental health—a critical first step in the process). Secondly, it creates the opportunity to explore how you can best support your UAP’s, teachers, administrators, and parents in identifying the red flags and early warning signs of rough waters ahead!
Powerpoint presentation:
National Center for Mental Health in Schools: UCLA
Mental Health in School & School Improvement: Current Status, Concerns, and
New Directions
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/mhbook/mhbooktoc.htm
